Susannah Andrew

Survivor of child family violence and teen catfishing. Obsessive learner. Digital Marketer, Journo & Doula. Book on the way, and seeking the right Producer for an award winning film script. Great on the Internet, wreck in real life. susannahbirch.com

View the full announcement: hawkeyebooks.com.au/blogs/news/202…

My memoir manuscript about surviving a near-fatal attack by my mother as a child, growing up in a cult, and being catfished for 12 years by an online predator has just been longlisted for the @Hawkeye_Publish Manuscript Development Prize. Thank you to the team and judges at Hawkeye Publishing. It’s an honour to be one of the 24 authors on the longlist.

@clairlemon Children abused by people they know are more vulnerable to further abuse later. Early trauma blurs what feels normal, and the mental health fallout often makes victims less likely to be believed the next time they try and speak out, so they're prime targets.

Nine out of ten children who are sexually abused are harmed by someone they know, usually in their own home. Using the issue as a partisan cudgel is as cynical as it is unserious. x.com/RizviAbul/stat…

@EXM7777 Please post this on your Threads account!

the grok bikini thing everyone's talking about is just the visible tip of something way darker... this is the start of a new era where everything you've ever posted online becomes a weapon that can be used against you and i need you to understand how serious this actually is we're not talking about photoshop anymore, we're talking about AI models and people that can take any photo of you and generate you in any situation, any context, any scenario someone wants to create every image you've posted, every video where your face is visible, every public moment you've shared... it's all training data now here's what makes this different from anything we've seen before: even if grok gets updated to refuse these requests tomorrow, even if every major AI company builds in restrictions... it's too late people already have access to open source models that can do the same thing, models that run locally on their computers with zero content policies, zero restrictions, zero way for anyone to stop them think about what that actually means for you: > your social media history is now a library of raw material for anyone who wants to manipulate your image > your professional photos can be placed in compromising situations you never agreed to > your vacation pics, your family photos, your casual selfies... all of it can be used to create content that looks completely real and there's no way to go back from this point, the technology is out there, fully distributed across thousands of computers, impossible to contain or control more than ever before, you need to be extremely careful about what you post online moving forward everything you post online will 100% be used against you at some point, whether that's next month or ten years from now i don't wanna be fear mongering, this is the new reality we're living in and most people still don't understand how serious it is

This is just another reason I've been telling people for years not to put photos of their children publicly on the Internet.

@SedonaCAuthor I wrote the book, the question is, will I publish a book next year.

Will you write a book next year?

@thevoicetruth1 Later media reports say he is Muslim and a tobacco shop owner. His parents were interviewed, too.

I’ll just put this here, even though I know some people won’t like it. What if Ahmed al-Ahmed’s presence at the scene was not coincidental? What are the chances that a Muslim, Syrian, Sunni (Palestinians are Sunni as well) would be at the exact place and the exact moment when the terrorist lowered his gun? What are the chances that he would jump on him from the side, not from behind, without the terrorist-a supposedly well-trained fighter-noticing him? Why did the terrorist appear comfortable slowly backing away from Ahmed al-Ahmed, as if he knew he would not be shot? Why is it that in other photos Ahmed al-Ahmed appears bearded, yet on that day he was clean-shaven? Just think about this for a moment: If the takeover was part of a plan, it would achieve two goals at once: • Massacring Jews • Sending a message to the world that Islam as a whole is not the problem, only a few “rotten apples” that need to be dealt with Such a narrative would immediately undermine calls for mass deportation of Muslim immigrants. Look at what’s happening in the media. The terrorist attack itself is already fading from attention. Instead, everyone is talking about the “Muslim hero.” Anyone who dares to criticize Islam is being silenced. People are increasingly afraid to criticize violent behavior carried out by Muslims around the world. And if someone does dare to speak up, they are immediately confronted with the same response: “What about the Muslim hero who saved the Jews?” I know some of you reading this will think I’ve lost my mind. But ever since Hamas managed to deceive Israeli intelligence and carry out the October 7th massacre, I believe there is very little these jihadist groups are incapable of doing to achieve their goals. I believe a thorough investigation is necessary. I believe there may be more to this story than what we see right now. I truly hope I am wrong. But I have seen enough to seriously doubt that I am. #SydneyTerroristAttack #AhmedAlAhmed @AlboMP

Just went to #ACDC in Brisbane and they were fantastic but the AV really let the show down; the audio was very distorted and we couldn't hear the lyrics at all.

In case you're wondering how inaccurate AI checkers are, here's a page from my memoir which I wrote around 2014.

My 16-year-old daughter just informed me that on her Spotify wrapped there was only one artist that wasn't dead.

@itsme_urstruly 13 years old, sitting up watching TV at midnight in Perth. Right on 12, the TV went to static and stayed like that for ten minutes, then went back to normal. I bet someone at the TV station had a good laugh.

If you were alive back then, what were you up to on 31st December 1999

A couple of years ago, my local hospital lost my medical records when I was admitted to the ICU with breathing difficulties. Because of my paralysed vocal cord and small airway, I had a team of doctors doing invasive procedures and threatening a surgery that I didn't want (and thankfully found out in time that I didn't need). It was very fortunate that I'd requested copies of my medical records via the Freedom of Information Act (FOI) a few years earlier while writing my book and I was able to have a friend bring my records to the hospital. Yesterday, one of my friends posted about how she'd been told important childhood records requested by one government agency had likely been destroyed by another government agency. She's been trying to access important information that might simply have been shredded when a date ticked over. So, here's an important message: no matter where you are in life or how healthy you are right now, please request copies of your records. Medical records, child safety records, school records, court records, disability records; anything that documents important parts of your life. Don't assume they'll be there when you need them. Get copies and keep them safe because you deserve to have access to your own story.

@clgslr Thank you! I can add more stories (working hard on the show don't tell) but the key points are already in there.

@SusannahBirch With memoir you have a tiny bit of wiggle room, actually. I would say aim to reach 70k if you can make it happen, but if you're just adding words to add words then you're probably okay as is.

I've noticed a huge uptick in adult novels being queried at wordcounts less than 60k; please know that I can't consider anything below that threshold (and tbh even 60k is quite short, but it's the number I've decided I am comfortable with)

When life hands you trauma, you make Halloween costumes. 📷 Photo by my daughter Lara, budding photographer.

@klhicks912 Your website and email list are the only digital assets you own and control.

What is your opinion on having an author's website? I think it's an important part of your author's platform, but I know some people may disagree

In one of my first jobs, there was an older manager who made young female staff uncomfortable. He never did anything overt enough that I thought to report it; but he'd make sexual innuendos, comment on our bodies, ask intimate questions about our dating lives, and crack inappropriate jokes just to gauge our reactions. Male staff outnumbered female staff, and I often worked late shifts where I'd pack up and he'd lock up. One night, not long after I'd put in my notice to move to another company, we were alone for lockup. He began asking inappropriate questions about my relationship with my boyfriend. And at that moment, I snapped. I was fairly shy and inexperienced at this point in my life and I still don't know what made me do it, but I stood up, turned to him, pointed my finger in his face, and announced: "If you ever say anything like that to me ever again, I will tell everyone and make sure you lose your job." Watching him back up against the wall and stammer "I'm sorry, I won’t do it again" made me realise I had more power than I had realised to stop this behavior. I never formally reported him, but when I left the job, I told the owner what the manager was like and said that if anyone else ever complained in future, I would back them up. Sadly, I see this happening in my town too often. The other day I was talking to someone and mentioned a well-known local businessperson. I said, "You know that they have a reputation as..." and she finished my sentence: "...a sex pest?" People don't call it out because we're in a small town and business reputations matter; but the one thing I've learned through many workplaces and many different social situations is this: if no one calls someone out on their bad behaviour, they'll continue. And often, they'll do something worse. So, if you have the opportunity to say something, do it. And if you say it, just know that I'll believe you.

Confession: I tried my first pumpkin spice latte, and I liked it.

October is both ADHD Awareness Month and Domestic and Family Violence Prevention Month, and I think that overlap matters more than you might think. People who are neurodivergent are significantly more likely to miss red flags in relationships with abusive people. Abusive people often lovebomb; and if you have ADHD, that dopamine rush can be intoxicating. Abusive people often lie and manipulate through carefully practiced social performances; and if you're autistic, it's harder to know if those social cues are appropriate or if they're actually warning signs. Personally, I've developed a coping mechanism: I don't trust anyone who comes across as too charismatic and appears too polished. Usually, that level of smoothness comes from far too much practice. If someone's left a trail of broken relationships behind them, sometimes they are the problem. It's also what worries me about dating apps. Once upon a time, we met people through friends, at school, at work, at church; places where mutual connections could vouch for both of you. When you meet someone on a dating app, you don't know the person they just broke up with. You don't know why their family member isn't in their life anymore. You don't know about that friendship they destroyed five years ago. The more you know about someone from the people around them and the years behind them, the safer your relationship will be.